Yahoo Finance Battery materials group Umicore slashes outlook amid EV demand slowdown
Investing.com -- Brussels-listed shares in Umicore (EBR:UMI) slumped by more than 7% on Wednesday after the Belgian metal recycling group slashed its 2024 profit guidance.
The maker of catalytic converters and battery materials has been banking on an influx of orders from Chinese electric vehicle (EV) companies looking to boost their presence in Europe. However, it warned that it now does not expect those volumes to materialize this year, citing a recent slowdown in demand for EVs that is "impacting the entire supply chain."
Meanwhile, battery maker ACC flagged last week that it will pause work at some of its factories to switch to batteries made without nickel and cobalt. Umicore supplies both of these rare metals.
In a statement, Chief Executive Bart Sap said the short-term outlook for battery materials is "clearly disappointing."
"At the same time the electro-mobility trajectory is and will not be linear, like in any other significant industry transformation," Sap added.
Umicore said it now sees full-year adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization at 760 million euros to 800 million euros. It had previously guided for 900 million euros to 950 million euros.
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